MERCATOR PROJECTED

"Mercator Projected" is the debut full-length studio album by UK, Bristol based psychedelic rock/progressive rock act East of Eden. The album was released through Deram Records in April 1969. East of Eden formed in 1967 and went through a number of lineup changes before they settled with the quintet lineup of Geoff Nicholson (guitar, vocals), Dave Arbus (electric violin, flute, bagpipes, recorder, saxophones), Ron Caines (soprano & alto saxophones, organ, vocals), Steve York (bass, harmonica, kalimba), and Dave Dufont (drums/percussion) for the recording sessions for "Mercator Projected". Even before "Mercator Projected" was released though the rhythm section had left, resulting in further lineup changes. Lineup changes actually ended up marring East of Eden´s entire career and by February 1973 not a single original member remained in the lineup. East of Eden did however continue until 1978 when they finally disbanded. There have been a couple of reunions since.

Stylistically the music featured on the 8 track, 44:53 minutes long album is psychedelic tinged rock with progressive leanings. The core guitar, bass, and drums instrumentation play some pretty hard rocking riffs and beats, but East of Eden aren´t just another Cream copy churning out heavy riffs, but instead a more sophisticated and eclectic act. The use of flute, violin, and saxophones, organ, harmonica, and even kalimba provide the music with an extra adventurous dimension. So there´s definitely an experimental element to the album which makes it stand out, although I wouldn´t exactly label this progressive music. It´s not jazz/rock either, but there are still strong ties to exactly that. The vocals are pretty standard for the genre. They get the job done (both harder rocking and more mellow vocals) and they suit the music fine, but they don´t stand out as anything extraordinary. When East of Eden are most mellow and melancholic they remind me of King Crimson and maybe a little bit of The Moody Blues too. They are generally a much harder rocking band though.

"Mercator Projected" features a powerful, organic, and detailed sound prodction, which suits the material perfectly. So there´s definitely an air of high level professionalism surrounding the album and the eclectic nature of the band´s music also makes this quite the interesting listen. Thankfully it´s not too artsy and it´s nice to hear the band rock out showing off their incredible playing skills. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.